VICTORIAN ITEMS.

Westport Times, Volume IV, Issue 665, 31 May 1870, Page 3

VICTORIAN ITEMS.

By the steamship Gothenburg which left Melbourne on the 19th instant, we have files to that date, from which we extract the following items of intelligence:— The usual birthday levee was to be held by His Excellency the Governor, at the Exhibition-Building, on Tuesday, the 24th inst., at 3 o'clock in the afternoon.

An extraordinary attempt to Bhoot Mr G. P. Smith was made on Tuesday afternoon, the 17th inst., by Mr Gerard Henry Supple, a barrister by profession, who has been for some years past following the avocation of a journalist in Melbourne, and the attempt was followed up by the shooting of an hotelkeeper, named John Walshe, while endeavoring to protect Mr Geo. P. Smith from the attack of the latter. He died on Wednesday afternoon in the hospital. The following deposition was taken before Mr Sturt:— "I was at the corner of Victoria and Latrobe-street yesterday evening. I was alone at the time. I saw Geo. Paton Smith. He was running round the corner. He ran towards me. A man, a stranger to me, was running after him. I saw a pistol in his hand, and he fired two shots at Mr Smith. The prisoner (Mr Supple) is the man who had the pistol in his hand and fired the shots. Mr Smith ran towards me, crying out, ' save me, save me!' He ran past me, and the prisoner close upon him. I heard the prisoner say, ': You slanderous wretch, I'll' . I did not hear the remainder of the sentence. I put my arms round the prisoner, and seized him by the neck. I endeavored to hold his arms. He struggled with me, and I knocked him down. I saw him raise the pistol, and point it at me. I am certain he pointed at me. He fired one shot. I was standing stooping over him at the time he fired. A gentleman came up and seized the revolver. I got yuite faint after that. "When the shot was fired I felt conscious that I was hit in the belly. I knew George Paton Smith before, but I never spoke to him. I cannot recognise the gentleman present (Mr M'Cullagh) as the one who took the revolver from the prisoner." An inquest was to have been held on Thursday, by Dr Toul, on the body of Mr Walshe, and Mr Supple would probably be committed for trial on the Coroner's warrant. JlkS —„„ „* alleged slander, and it is anticipated that a defence of temporary insanity will be set up at the trial. Mr Smith was slightly wounded but is progressing favorably. a In Gipps Land the floods are proving rather destructive to both mining and agricultural property, and at present the waters have not materially abated. At Walhalla a number of mining claims have been inundated, to the great injury of machinery and plant, and the life of a miner named Bishop has been sacrificed.